Card Game
by l5ai
Summary: Summary in Chapter 1. Rated for language. SonAmy. R&R for more chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**First fanfic with this penname. I didn't remember my old one so I had to restart. Hopefully I'll stick with this story, unlike before. Just for copyright reasons, I do not own any of the Sonic Team characters. I do, however, claim the rights of my OCs, Seraphy, and the ones to come later in the story. Er…. ENJOY!**

_Summary- It's been two years since anyone has seen Eggman after Sonic stopped him from unleashing the power in the center of the Earth. But no one has seen Sonic since then either, and no one really remembers him. Sonic has been spending his time with Amy, building a strong relationship with her. But when he decides to take the next step in the relationship, something happens, and Amy is taken away from him. Now he has to get her back with the help of new friends from a different world, and break the curse._

Prologue

"Amy." His voice was barely audible, a mere whisper. Passionate, filled with years of love and care (and a little bit of annoyance in some times), Sonic spoke. Nothing could describe what he felt right then. There he stood with one arm casually around Amy's waist, in a vacant valley on a cool June night. There was a gentle breeze swaying the emerald green leaves on the trees, keeping the two hedgehogs cool. Crickets chirped their soft songs in the background, sounding like a melody made just for the couple that stood there.

It had been over two years since anyone (except Tails, Knuckles, and Amy) had seen this streak of blue lightning sprint around in town. No one knew where he had gone, and according to Amy, who drifted into town every so often to shop, Sonic had been forgotten. However, this information did not anger him, or even slightly bother him. Although it sounded selfish of him, he didn't want people to always be running to him for help with every little thing.

After days of thought following his last rendezvous with Eggman, Sonic had given up his life of chasing down Eggman (and being chased by Amy, for that matter) to devote himself to Amy. No one had been ready for such a choice, even Amy had been caught off guard, and Sonic offered no explanation for what he chose.

Now, Sonic did not leave his world unprotected. Ever since Sonic had defeated Eggman when he tried to summon the power of the center of the Earth, no one has seen the slightest trace of Eggman. And even if he did manage to come back, Shadow, the ultimate life-form, could handle the task of defeating him time and time again.

"Sonic." Amy breathed next to him, bringing the blue wonder back to his senses. The way she spoke, and how her voice practically shook when she said his name, made Sonic smile to himself. Amy admitted countless times that even after all these years; she still couldn't believe that Sonic was finally hers.

She didn't really know how serious he had become over the two years in their relationship. He was two years older now, but seemingly years older when it came to wisdom and maturity. The arm that wasn't wrapped around Amy's waist as they stared out at the valley at the fireflies was tucked behind his back, and in his hand he held a small box. Yes, as many clichés would tell you, in his hand he held an engagement ring. He was ready for this step. Hopefully, so was she.

However, before Sonic could "pop the question" he had to have the right time to do so. Tails and Knuckles had insisted on being there as well, so he had to wait for them. In near silence they stood right next to each other, just enjoying the physical closeness.

Then there was a soft _pop_. Both of the hedgehogs looked around, and suddenly, Amy gasped and pointed at the sky. Fireworks were raining down the black night sky, neon green in color. If there was a better time to propose to his dream girl, Sonic didn't know what it was. Knuckles and Tails needed to hurry, before the fireworks were over or before Sonic lost the patience and asked anyway.

"Sorry we're late, Sonic, Knuckles got lost." Tails voice rang out behind them, and the yellow three-tailed fox slid out from the shadows of the trees that lined the valley. His voice was no longer as high pitched as many would remember, but it still had that childish tone to it that everyone had come to know and love. No one but Tails wanted him to grow out of that voice.

Behind him, Knuckles appeared, his red dreadlocks hanging shaggily from his head. His large hands, usually balled into tight fists when he was angry, hung at his sides in a relaxed manner. There was a lingering sense of anticipation hanging in the air; everyone but Amy knew what was about to happen, and what Sonic was about to ask her.

Or so they _thought_ they knew what was going to happen.

Amidst the sound of the fireworks popping and crackling in the dark sky, no one heard the soft, idling hum of a flying machine only a ways behind them. There Eggman floated, watching the scene before him, eyes glistening with triumph. This was the perfect opportunity to unleash the master plan he had in his mind, however, he waited for the perfect moment. His eyes shot down to the ground beneath him, and there stood a lone figure.

The figure was a human man, about twenty-one years of age, with fiery-red hair and blood red eyes to match. His lips were pulled into a menacing smile as he watched the same scene Eggman was watching with anticipation. Timing was key, however, so he waited patiently. His hands were in his pockets, and he had a casual look about him, but the dark circles under his eyes made him seem a little more angry and intimidating when one looked at him.

"Amy," Sonic murmured softly, unaware of the audience that lingered so closely behind him and his friends, "I want to ask you something…" Before Amy could even glance in his direction, he was assuming the proposal position, on one knee, with the box in his hand, directed toward Amy. She gasped, and tears of joy filled the corners of her eyes as Sonic opened his mouth to speak. "Will you…"

However, he was cut off. The red-headed figure emerged from the shadows behind them, chuckling sinisterly and rather loud. Everyone turned to look in his direction, and Sonic scrambled to stand, and took a defensive position in front of Amy, one arm stretched out to keep her behind him. She didn't move, but only stared, the tears or joy already disappearing into anger. The perfect moment, the best moment of her life, had just been ruined by someone she didn't even know.

"Who are you?" She said weakly, her voice and body shaking with anger. The figure said nothing, but chuckled again and looked over his shoulder toward Eggman, coaxing him to make introductions. Eggman pushed a button and his hover machine drifted to be level with the figure.

"Eggman!" Sonic exclaimed, and then growled softly to himself. What a time for him to finally show up. "Who the hell is he and what the hell are you doing here?" Amy glanced at him with a surprised look on her face, seeing as Sonic never swore in front of her or Tails.

"This is Seraphy; my new partner." He rasped, and then cleared his throat. The figure, now known as Seraphy, glared in his direction, and then looked back at the group in front of him.

"Not partner. That would infer we had the same level of power. More or less, I'm his leader. My name is in fact Seraphy, but feel free to call me Raph." His voice was smooth like velvet, and his tongue rolled around each syllable smoothly, making it almost dazzling the way he spoke. He let out another soft, sinister chuckle, like that of Lucifer as he left heaven. "I have a feeling you and I are going to be quite acquainted, Sonic."

"What do you mean? What do you want?" Sonic snarled, muscles tensing beneath his coarse blue fur. Everyone else was speechless, and it seemed like they weren't even there. Seraphy's attention never drifted from Sonic's form.

"I want nothing out of you. It's Eggman that decided we should target you. But I must say, by the looks of you and your friends, you aren't a bad choice." Seraphy never looked away as Eggman's hover machine rose slightly, and Eggman let out an evil cackle.

"Do it Raph!" He exclaimed as he laughed, and the sinister smile on Seraphy's face grew wider. He lifted a hand slowly, and Sonic tensed even more, getting ready to leap at him. Seraphy saw this change in body language and laughed as loud and sinister as Eggman, only his was still so velvety.

"Try and stop me, Sonic. I dare you." Seraphy said quietly, but his voice seemed to echo loud enough for all to hear it. But before Sonic could even leap, Seraphy snapped his fingers, and at the sound, a blinding white light blinded Sonic. He could hear Amy and the others screaming, but he couldn't move to save them.

Suddenly, Sonic's world went black.

**Hmmm… it seems short to me… I don't know… Also, as of right now the title doesn't make much sense, but it'll start coming together in Chapter 1. But, if you liked it, let me know. Quid pro quo. You review, I add more chapters. Even without reviews, I'll write for the heck of it, but it'll be slower. Plus, come on people, I like to reply to reviews and talk to people! Give me something to do!**

**3 l5ai**


	2. Chapter 2

**Please note: My OCs speak French, so translations are at the bottom of the page. Also note, I still don't own any of the Sonic Team characters (oh if only…) but I do however own Seraphy, Shadowrose, Megin, and Midnight. HANDS OFF.**

Chapter 2

"_J'ai trouvé quelque chose_" A voice said. The voice belonged to a teenage girl, who was wandering the valley slowly. The words were French, a language Sonic wasn't familiar with, even if he was conscious. Slowly, the girl approached the unconscious figure skeptically. "_Non! C'est quelqu'un_!" Excitement reflected in the girl's voice as she came even closer and saw Sonic breathing.

"_Est-ce mon amour_?" A male voice's rang out from a speaker in the girl's ear, in the same unfamiliar language. The tone was worried, and anticipation of the answer hung in his voice. The girl came closer to Sonic, and knelt down next to him. Slowly, she brushed her fingers through his quills, eyes sparkling with surprise_._

"_Non… C'est… un hérisson?" _Confusion echoed in the girl's voice. As she spoke, Sonic opened one eye and groaned. Slowly, he sat up and looked around, and found himself face to face with the girl.

Her hair, a shade of violet dark like raven feathers, framed her face and made her skin seemed pale in comparison. Her eyes were green like the chaos emerald, and glittered in the sunlight as she looked at him. Slowly, she lifted a hand to brush a lock of dark hair behind her ear, and Sonic saw the painted nails and recently cleaned cuticles. Her ears were pierced, a small silver heart earring in each. Slowly she stood, resting her hands on her knees to stand up right, and Sonic noticed the holes in the knees of her jeans, and the torn-up cuffs on each pant leg.

"_Salut._" She said calmly, a small smile stretched across her face. Sonic tilted his head to one side, confused, because he didn't know what she had just said.

"Pardon?" He said quietly, starting to think he was dreaming or this was a hallucination from a very bad concussion. The girl's smile twisted with embarrassment, and her cheeks flushed a rosy red.

"Sorry. Hi, my name is Midnight, what's yours?" Slowly she reached a hand out to him, offering to help him stand. He took her hand cautiously, muscles tensed warily.

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog." His voice remained quiet and weak, and as he stood, he realized just how ache-y he was. He managed to keep his balance, but just barely. Midnight noticed his jerky movements and stretched out her arm, hooking it around his shoulders to support him. "Thanks." He murmured quietly, eyes starting to droop. All he wanted to do was sleep, for some reason.

"How long have you been here, Sonic?" Midnight's tone took a worried sound to it. As she waited for him to think about it, she looked over his body. Her eyes caught something, and she stepped away from him, withdrawing her arm, and looked shocked. "What is that?"

Sonic looked down to where she was looking, and tucked in his glove were four cards he had never seen before. Before he could even start to reach for them to pull them out of his glove, Midnight reached and pulled them out.

The cards were like playing cards for poker, only the design on the back were different. The back was black, with a red vortex drawn on top of it and a fancy looking red border around it. Midnight wasn't all that interested in the back, but her eyes were widened as she glanced over the front of each card. Slowly, she pulled one out, and turned it to face Sonic. "Do you know the person on the front of this card?"

It was Amy. In an instant, Sonic regained all of his energy, and he looked around. Amy had just been here a few minutes ago, hadn't she? Then a flashback of the last time he saw Amy hit him, along with the mental image of Seraphy sketched in his mind. "Amy…" He whispered sadly, ears drooping with remorse as he looked to the ground. "I didn't protect her…"

"Don't beat yourself up over it, Sonic." Midnight said quietly as she shifted through the cards. "Telling by the back of these cards, this was Seraphy's work, and unless you know his weakness, no one can defeat him." She put the cards back into a neat stack, not even bothering to look at them all, and grabbed Sonic's wrist. "Come with me." Sonic hesitated at first, but followed her anyway. If she knew the weakness of this Seraphy guy, maybe he could defeat him and save Amy.

Adrenaline fueled Sonic as he sprinted along side Midnight, running across the valley and through the forest that surrounded it. Midnight wove through the trees like there was a specific path set on the ground for her, although Sonic could only see tangles of weeds and tree roots everywhere on the ground he looked.

After five minutes of an even-paced sprint (which was surprising for a human, in Sonic's eyes), they came to a small clearing in the middle of the forest, and there sat a large wooden house, much like the Team Chaotix Headquarters, only larger. Midnight stepped in front of the door, and a small metal box jutted toward her, demanding a code to be punched in.

'_High tech. Tails would have loved to see this._' Sonic thought, and his heart seemed to leap into his throat. Tails had been there that night with him and Amy, and Knuckles too. Had Tails and Knuckles made it out okay, or were they victims of the same fate as Amy? His heart was thudding in his chest as he followed Midnight through the door that automatically opened, and he gasped at what he saw.

The first thing he noticed was the computer screen that was three times longer than Sonic's height. Beneath it sat a very advanced looking keyboard, with thousands of unfamiliar keys compared to the keyboards Tails used, and the keyboard was placed on a very heavyset wooden desk in front of a tall, black leather chair.

The room itself was two stories, and there was a spiral staircase in another room on the left, which probably lead to the bedrooms. Every wall in the room was lined with bookshelves, filled completely with books, and there was a ladder with wheels to reach the higher shelves. Even with all the room to put books on, there were still stacks of books in various places because they couldn't fit on the shelves.

Amongst one of the giant heaps of books, there was a man crouching, digging for a particular book but having no idea where to look. At the sound of the door thudding shut automatically behind Sonic and Midnight, he stood and turned in their direction.

At first glance, he looked like Seraphy by his facial features. They were built the same, with high cheekbones and flawless skin with a dark complexion. But at a closer look, the man's hair was a shade of teal that was more blue than green, and his eyes were jet black. Beneath his eyes were dark circles, reflecting a lack of sleep, and even his eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion. His eyes were protected beneath thin-rimmed black glasses that sat at the very end of his nose, and he pushed them back up to the bridge. His lips were pulled into a frustrated scowl as he turned back to the stack of books, hardly noting the arrival of Midnight and Sonic.

"What are you doing?" Midnight asked as she approached the man. By comparison, Midnight was even lither in build, and Sonic guessed her age to be about sixteen. Sonic himself was eighteen. The man turned his attention away from the books and back to Midnight, and they silently looked at each other for a few seconds, as if they were talking without words.

"Why am I here?" Sonic asked after a few more seconds of silence. To him, the silence had felt awkward, but it was probably natural to Midnight and the man, since they seemed to have a strong connection and probably could tell what the other was thinking without asking.

"_Oui… Porquoi, Minuit? Et qui est il?" _The man asked, eyes glittering with skepticism.

"No French speaking in front of a guest, Shadowrose, you know that's rude." Midnight scolded, wagging her finger at him playfully. Shadowrose attempted to smile, but only shook his head sadly. "And his name is Sonic."

"Why is he here?" Shadowrose asked, this time so Sonic could understand. Midnight pulled the cards she had taken from Sonic out of a pocket and spread them out in her hands, backs to Shadowrose. Shadowrose's eyes rose in alarm, and he turned his attention to Sonic.

"Where did you get these? When?" He demanded, not taking the time to properly introduce himself. Sonic shifted uneasily from foot to foot, not sure of what was going on. Sonic turned his gaze to Midnight for answers as she was putting the cards back in her pocket.

"You know how he got them, Shadowrose. Stop being so hostile to our guest!" She snapped, eyes seeming to burn a hole through his skin. Shadowrose turned his eyes away to avoid hers, looking sad about something. Midnight's glare softened. "You really can't function without her, can you?"

"_Non…_" He whispered, and even Sonic knew what that meant. Obviously he and Shadowrose were in the same boat, they had both lost a girl dear to them. Midnight turned to Sonic, looking apologetic.

"Shadowrose normally isn't like that; he just can't live without his fiancée, Megin." She explained, looking as though she had lost someone too. "We lost her a few weeks ago, and he can barely eat or sleep anymore."

"Lost her as in… she died?" Sonic asked slowly. Shadowrose tensed, closing his eyes and turning away from Sonic and Midnight, obviously nearly in tears.

"She isn't dead…" He whispered, mostly to himself like he was trying to reassure himself. "I would have felt her die. She's just lost somewhere… I'll find her."

"We haven't seen her since we came here." Midnight explained as Shadowrose whispered to himself, fighting back tears.

"Came here? What do you mean by that?" Sonic asked, confused.

Midnight sighed slowly, realizing she had quite a story to tell. "You see, Sonic, your world is not the only one out there. Shadowrose, Seraphy, Megin and I come from another world. Somehow, we ended up here, and we haven't seen Megin since." Suddenly, Shadowrose scoffed angrily and turned back toward Midnight, eyes burning with anger.

"Somehow?! You know very well how we ended up in this god forsaken place. Seraphy did it. And Seraphy took my poor sweet Megin away from me!" He accused bitterly, growling under his breath. Sonic frowned.

"How do you know Seraphy?" He asked, trying to wrap his mind around this confusing concept. Shadowrose chuckled bitterly to himself.

"The son of a bitch is my twin brother. And yet, we differ so much, both by appearance and personality. He's a manipulating son of a bitch with hair the same shade of the flame of hell where he was conceived, and I'm a loving guy with hair the shade of the ocean water."

As Shadowrose spoke, Sonic took a closer look at him. His shoulders were far narrower than Seraphy's and he lacked muscle tone, while Seraphy had broad shoulders and well defined muscles. Sonic summed the two brothers up in a very easy way: Shadowrose was the brains while Seraphy was the brawn.

"You don't seem like such a loving guy right now, Shad." Midnight teased. Shadowrose slowly shook his head again, sighing.

"I know." He replied softly. "I apologize, Sonic. This is very out-of-character for me."

"It's alright," Sonic said with a smile. "We all have our days, right?"

"Shadowrose has been having 'his month' really." Midnight said as she pulled the cards out again, without reason. Absently, she flipped through them. She sat down, and threw Amy's card to the floor, face-up, turned toward Sonic. Sonic shivered at the image on the card.

On the card, Amy stood with her hands covering her mouth, like she was trying to muffle her own screaming. Her pink quills and her red dress were blown in every direction, and her eyes were widened and bloodshot. Sonic looked away from the card, and Shadowrose sighed sympathetically.

"Seraphy views love as nothing more than a person's weakness. He embodied your girlfriend in the most devastating pose so you could never lay your eyes on it without feeling guilty." Slowly, Shadowrose sat down by the card and flipped it over, so Amy's image was to the carpet, and the red vortex showed. "The vortex is his trademark symbol for his insanity." He informed Sonic, who also sat down, feeling sick.

Midnight tossed out another card. This one was of Tails. Sonic's stomach twisted into a hard knot. Tails hadn't made it out safe. The image of Tails was much like Amy's, only there were tears in the corners of Tails' eyes, which seemed to take a knife through Sonic's heart. Shadowrose turned it face-down again, glaring at Midnight, but she didn't notice.

The third card was tossed next to the ones of Tails and Amy. This one was of Knuckles. Instead of embodying fear in Knuckles' pose, Knuckles had cuts all over his body, and blood matted his red fur. His eyes were drooping, consciousness seeming to slip from his body as he stood, with his fists loose and hanging from his body limply. His eyes, violet in color, were dull and nearly lifeless. Sonic closed his eyes, forcing himself to keep his stomach contents right where they were.

"Oh my god…" Midnight whispered as she held the final card. Sonic opened one eye warily, and noticed Shadowrose had turned down Knuckles' card, looking worried about Sonic. Midnight was staring wide eyed at the card, and finally she dropped it on top of the others.

The girl on this card, Sonic had never seen. She looked like Midnight in build, only her skin was dark toned like Shadowrose and Seraphy's. Her eyes were almost an unnaturally light shade of crystal blue, and her hair was jet black and reached down to her hips. In the image, blood was seeping from her neck and she was starting to sink to her knees.

Shadowrose gasped as his eyes fell on the image, and he closed his eyes, tears welling in the corners. Blindly, he grasped at the card and held it close. "_Mon amour…_" He whispered softly as a tear trickled down his cheek.

"We can save her, Shadowrose. We can save all of them." Midnight said quickly, getting to her feet and turning toward the computer. Rapidly, she began to type into the complex keyboard as Shadowrose kept a tight grasp on the card.

"You won't find answers on the computer." Shadowrose murmured through his tears. "Only I know the answers to unlocking Seraphy's curse on people." He held the card tighter, tears still trickling down his face. "These images…" He croaked quietly, trying to force himself to speak. "They depict the last stance of the person cursed."

"You don't really think Seraphy would do that… Do you?" Midnight said quietly, tears starting to well in her eyes too. Sonic started seeing the image of Knuckles in his head, and he felt like he was going to be sick. What did Seraphy do to him?

"Of course he would. He cares about no one but himself."

Sonic couldn't even think straight. Why would Seraphy target his friends? Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, and Tails… They didn't even know him, what did Seraphy have against them? Then his memory of that night hit him. Before the screaming… Before the blinding light…

"Eggman." Sonic murmured, realization hitting him hard. Midnight and Shadowrose turned their attention to Sonic, not understanding what he was saying. "Eggman was with Seraphy, the night when there were fireworks in the sky. He said Eggman chose me and my friends as the target, not him."

"What would he want with you?" Shadowrose asked. Sonic shrugged, unable to think clearly. His head began to sag slightly as he struggled to stay awake. Everything that had happened today had drained the energy from him. Midnight noticed his fatigue, and probably felt her own hit her suddenly, because she seemed as tired as Sonic was. Shadowrose glanced at the clock.

"You guys, get to bed. It's almost one in the morning. I'll think out how we're going to face this situation tomorrow." He said as he stood, his eyes were still puffy from the few tears he shed. He sniffed, wiped his nose on his sleeve, and turned back to his books. Sonic didn't refuse, and slowly got to his feet with Midnight and followed her up the spiral staircase to the bedrooms.

Sonic had been too tired to take in any detail of the walls around him as Midnight lead him to a small bedroom, and he kicked his shoes off with his eyes closed as he fell forward onto the mattress. Sleep claimed him almost instantly, but his dreams were nothing more than the images of Amy, Tails, Knuckles, and now Megin, that had been engraved in his head a few minutes earlier.

**Translations and Author's Notes-**

**1. J'ai trouvé quelque chose – I found something**

**2. Non! C'est quelqu'un****! - ****No! It's someone!**

**3. Est-ce mon amour? – Is it my love?**

**4. Non… C'est… un hérisson? – No… It's… a hedgehog?**

**5. Salut – Hi**

**6. Oui… Porquoi, Minuit? Et qui est il? – Yes… Why, Midnight? And who is he?**

**Fun chapter. Long, but really fun. I'm glad people like this story, because I'm going to have a lot of fun writing it. Well, now the title makes sense, right? Thank you to everyone who reviewed, and a special thanks to Dezerango for reminding me to describe my OCs a little more. Keep Reviewing! It keeps me motivated to write more, since I know I have fans.**


	3. Chapter 3

**What can I say? I'm addicted! I was writing this chapter before I even got any reviews for my last chapter. I'm really glad people are enjoying my fanfic, because I am really enjoying writing it. Hope I can finish! Maybe I'll even make up a sequel to it! Anyway, enjoy. Oh yeah… I still don't own the characters of the Sonic Team, but Seraphy, Shadowrose, Midnight, Megin, and any other OCs that may slip into the plot are MINE. Hands off! (You'll probably see this disclaimer every chapter, since I'm incredibly paranoid. I mean, who WOULDN'T want to steal Seraphy? He's so sexy!)**

Chapter 3

The sun so high in the sky signaled that it was past noon when Sonic finally awoke, still feeling a little drowsy. His door was open slightly, suggesting someone had come in to check on him earlier and still found him asleep. The fatigue that seemed to hang over his body was unbreakable, and it took an incredible amount of willpower to even sit up from the guest bed he had been supplied, much less swing his feet over the edge and stand. As he stood, he stumbled slightly, as if he were drunk or hung-over. His head seemed to pound, and he lifted his hands to rub his temples slowly. Sonic struggled to remember what had happened the night before.

Then it all hit him. The cards were still etched in his mind, and had haunted his dreams the night before. Frantically, he looked around for them, now fully awake. Where had they gone? Then he remembered Shadowrose had taken them as Midnight led him to bed. He let out a sigh of relief, but then felt frustrated when the fatigue dripped back into his muscles. Only adrenaline could keep him awake now. Hopefully, today would be an exciting day.

Slowly he slipped on his shoes and headed for the stairs. He could barely keep his eyes open as he stomped down the stairs with heavy feet. This was annoying. Normally after such a good night's sleep, he could run for days without even thought of sleep, but now he felt like it was only three in the morning and he should still be in bed. Maybe Shadowrose could explain what was wrong with him.

As one could tell, Sonic had a great deal of respect for Shadowrose. He and Midnight had been able to supply many answers to the questions that burned at the back of his brain. Sonic also admired his strength, he noted, as he stepped into the large room he had been in the day before and saw Shadowrose holding the card of Megin with an emotionless look on his face. Had Sonic seen such an image of Amy, he wouldn't have been able to handle such a thing and would still be broken. Shadowrose's gaze met Sonic's for a moment, and Sonic could almost feel a silent greeting being passed through the gaze. Shadowrose's voice echoed in Sonic's head.

'_How did you sleep?'_ His voice said. Sonic blinked slightly, unable to comprehend what was going on. Sonic had never heard Shadowrose ask him such a question out loud, so he couldn't have been thinking back on something he had once said. Midnight seemed to catch the puzzled look on Sonic's face, because she chuckled softly and took a sip of coffee.

"It's polite to answer back when Shadowrose asks you something." She scolded playfully. Sonic blinked again, even more confused, and Midnight laughed again. "Shadowrose can speak through minds. I can too, but I'm not as good at it with people I'm not friends with. I have to have a bond to the person."

"How would I answer back?" Sonic asked, still confused.

"Just think your answer, he'll hear you." She replied, now glancing down at a newspaper in her hands. Sonic briefly thought that they were just playing a prank on him, and they were going to laugh when he said nothing and thought out what he would say to Shadowrose without ever opening his mouth. But seeing as this entire situation was out of the ordinary, the idea of speaking through minds wasn't that far out there.

_'I slept like a log. I still feel like I should still be asleep. Is this some side-effect of Seraphy's magic? I was tired all day yesterday when I came here too,'_ Sonic thought to himself, feeling kind of ridiculous for asking a question in his mind, expecting Shadowrose to answer.

"Well done," Shadowrose praised aloud after Sonic was done thinking. "And yes, it is a side effect. I'll make you up something to wake you up." Then Shadowrose got to his feet and turned to one of the bookshelves, now lost in thought.

"Shadowrose didn't sleep at all," Midnight commented quietly, without looking up from the newspaper in her hands. Seeing as Sonic only knew Shadowrose with the dark, tired circles under his eyes, he couldn't tell any different. "He was battling with himself on how to save Megin. He knows how to break the curse, but she was nearly dead before the curse was cast upon her." Her voice had a deep tone of sympathy echoed in every word. "I tried to help him think it out while I slept," she murmured. "We can talk in our minds even while we sleep. We are very closely connected."

"You aren't humans, are you?" Sonic asked slowly, basing this question off his relationship with Chris, a human who was no where near as special or powerful as these two were. Midnight let out a small, airy laugh, and her eyes glimmered brightly with amusement.

"We are, Sonic. We're just a special kind. We are the end results of genetic mutation, or really, an experiment." She flashed a small smile, unashamed of what she was. "The fact that we have bonded is nothing more than a coincidence. Shadowrose has two brothers; Seraphy, whom you have met, and…" She trailed off, looking troubled. Shadowrose came back from the bookshelf with a book in his hand, but when he saw the look twisting Midnight's face, he put the book down on the desk with the keyboard and placed his hand supportively on her shoulders.

"My other brother's name is Jeffrey. He's her fiancé. He's stuck back in our world." Shadowrose explained. Midnight seemed upset. "She has a sister, Megin, and a brother also named Jeffery. Seraphy and Jeffery are courting each other, so to speak. Since Jeffery is a shape-shifter, Seraphy has him… Well… turn into a girl when they have _relations_."

"That's confusing," Sonic muttered. "Is Seraphy gay?"

"Basically," Shadowrose said quietly. "But since Seraphy won't have _relations_ with Jeffery unless he shifts into a female form, he's technically straight."

"Just drop it!" Midnight snapped, getting to her feet. "That's not important!" There was an irritated look on her face, and Sonic couldn't understand what had provoked the sudden irritation. "Seraphy is a selfish bastard, we all know it, so why go into details?"

Shadowrose sighed softly to himself, ran his hand through his ocean-water colored hair, and went back to focusing on the book he had been holding earlier. Midnight began to pace, glaring at the floor, obviously agitated. Having nothing to keep his attention now, Sonic began to fall asleep. His eyes started getting heavy, his head hanging limply between his shoulders, as the fatigue started seeping in. There was a couch nearby, and Sonic dragged himself over and lay on it.

"Hey!" Shadowrose growled, now moving to the other side of the room to stand before a counter in what appeared to be a kitchen that Sonic had never noticed before. "You have to stay awake while I make this potion, alright?" Sonic nodded weakly, barely even recognizing what he was told, but managed to keep his eyes open and his mind moving in a slow, steady pace.

What could possibly be bothering Midnight so much? The agitation only started to really affect her when her brother Jeffery was discussed. Midnight didn't strike Sonic as the kind to judge their relationship, so he highly doubted she was agitated by the fact that her brother was gay. Maybe there was something deeper in the relationship that only she knew about, seeing as Shadowrose wasn't at all bothered by it.

'_Don't think on it too hard, Sonic' _Shadowrose's voice echoed in his head again. Sonic turned his gaze to Shadowrose, but Shadowrose wasn't even looking in his direction. _'I've known Midnight for years now, and I still can't figure out why it angers her so much. I've just kind of learned it's probably none of my business and just dropped the subject. It makes things a lot easier to deal with_'

'_How did you know what I was thinking?'_ Sonic asked in his mind. From the other side of the room, he heard Shadowrose chuckle out loud to himself. Had there been an evil tone to it like Seraphy had, the chuckle would have probably been exactly the same. Sonic began to wonder how much Midnight's fiancé was like Shadowrose and Seraphy, or even what he looked like.

'_Your mind is like an open book for me, Sonic.' _Shadowrose's voice said. _'And if you don't want Midnight to burst into tears, don't mention her fiancé. She hasn't seen him in weeks, and she can't hear his voice in our connection; he's too far away.'_

Sonic nodded to himself slightly, and stole a glance at Midnight. She was wearing the same torn up jeans she had on yesterday, but today Sonic took note that she was wearing a violet colored T-shirt that didn't cover all of her belly. Her raven feather colored hair was pulled up into a ponytail with a small, dark violet ribbon, and she had a pair of black hoop earrings in. She was still scowling and glaring at the floor; her fluid movements as she paced from side to side were almost hypnotizing. Sonic forced himself to look away from her, reminding himself he had a girlfriend and that Midnight was engaged.

'_Everyone can't get enough of Midnight' _Shadowrose's voice said, this time with a tone of amusement. _'But her loyalty to Jeffrey is unbreakable now, so you might as well turn your attention back to your own girlfriend before you go courting her.'_

'_I wasn't courting her'_ Sonic said defensively in his mind. Another chuckle was heard on the other side of the room. _'I was just admiring her looks.' _He insisted, as if that meant anything other than "I was checking her out".

Shadowrose turned away from the counter he was working at, holding a bowl in his hands. He approached Sonic and held out the bowl, and Sonic drowsily took it and looked inside. The potion was a mint green in color, and had the same look and texture of oatmeal. There were little flecks of blue in it as well. Sonic looked up at Shadowrose, and Shadowrose seemed to know what he was going to ask.

"It's made up mainly of a few herbs I know off the top of my head that cure fatigue, and a few things that counteract the brush with dark magic. The blue flecks are blueberries, to give it a little flavor." Shadowrose explained, looking proud of himself. Sonic glanced to Midnight, who had stopped pacing and was watching with interest. Sonic pressed the bowl to his lips and tilted it back, letting the mixture slide into his mouth, and he swallowed slowly. The blueberries were definitely evident, and Sonic actually enjoyed the taste.

As soon as he was done the mixture, he felt the energy return to his body. Shadowrose must have seen the excitement flash in his eyes, because his self-pride grew. Midnight smiled slightly, seeming a little less agitated from before. Sonic got to his feet, feeling he could run for days now.

"Feeling better?" Shadowrose asked, looking a little cocky now. Sonic nodded quickly. "Good," Shadowrose said, "because we're going on a little trip, and we have to walk."

"Walk? Why not run?" Sonic asked, the brightness in his eyes getting back to their normal rate. Shadowrose laughed and found a piece of paper and a pen, and wrote something down. Sonic assumed it was the ingredients he had used, since the mixture had been so effective so quickly.

"Where are we going?" Midnight asked, head tilted slightly in curiosity.

"Sonic should know." Shadowrose said. "Apotos Temple."

The memory hit Sonic so suddenly. Two years back, when Eggman had tried to release the power from the center of the world and he had been transformed into a "werehog", he had gone to that temple to regain the Chaos Emerald's power. Sonic was slightly disheartened, all of the sudden. If someone in Apotos remembered him, there would probably be some tiny little problem someone would ask him to fix, and then he would be requested time and time again for help. For two years, Sonic had been trying to avoid that life, now he was being thrust back into it.

But this was for Knuckles, Tails, and especially Amy. He would do anything to save them from the curse Seraphy had set on them. And Shadowrose would obviously need help finding the temple, since he had to save Megin from the same fate. With a sigh, Sonic decided it was time to leave the sheltered life of no worries and start a new adventure.

"What's so special there?" Sonic asked, after he finally made a mental choice on whether or not he would do this. Shadowrose smiled at him, probably happy that he would have assistance to save Megin.

"The temple has its own strength. And since one needs much strength and courage to break a spell like this, it's a perfect place to start. Apotos is a weak temple compared to some others, but it's a good way to teach you how to break the curse, and a good place for me to free Megin, since I'm a little stronger than you."

"Oh really?" Sonic challenged. Shadowrose grinned slightly, but didn't take him up on his challenge. Shadowrose was too mature for a measure of strength.

"Well let's go then! Sonic should know the way!" Midnight said, just as excited as Shadowrose was. Sonic nodded, and turned toward the door. Shadowrose held out a hand to stop him, and ran to the desk where the keyboard was, picking up a small book with a leather cover. "What's that?" Midnight inquired.

"It's my spell book." Shadowrose answered simply. Sonic was lost in the world of magic, and started to wonder how many spells Shadowrose had in that book. It was a relatively thick book, the spine was about an inch wide, and the book itself was about 7 inches tall. The leather cover was a faded brown, and starting to fray at some the edges, which reflected there were a few years of age to the book. Shadowrose saw his curiosity, and opened the book and handed it to Sonic.

Sonic gazed over the handwriting curiously. All the words were in a language unfamiliar to him, and Sonic didn't even venture a guess as to what it was. The handwriting itself was small and compressed. Every page was lined perfectly, the lines had been drawn with ink most likely, straight and precise, and every line was filled with different spells. Sonic didn't recognize a single word on the pages he glanced at. He handed the book back, looking impressed. Shadowrose smiled slightly, but offered no explanation to what any of it meant.

"Let's go!" Midnight urged, standing in the threshold of the open door. It was light outside, and there was a warm breeze blowing from outside. Shadowrose nodded, and the three of them all walked outside and made their way into the forest.

"So tell me, Sonic," Shadowrose said after a few minutes of walking in silence. Sonic had been concentrated on not tripping over anything on the ground as Midnight lead, and Shadowrose held up the rear. "What was the last thing you remember before Seraphy attacked you? I want to try to figure out what day it happened."

"I was about to propose to Amy," Sonic remarked, a little sad. Midnight cooed out an "awe" but otherwise listened in silence. "It would have been an amazing night if Seraphy hadn't ruined it. It was like the entire night was set up for me. There were even fireworks overhead, and Amy and I were just standing in the valley watching." Sonic closed his eyes for a moment and the flashback played in his mind. The bright fireworks, the loud pops and crackles as they danced along the black night sky… He longed to have the moment back, and to fix what had gone wrong.

"Fireworks?" Shadowrose asked, mostly to himself, with a shocked tone. "Are you sure? That was over a week ago!"

Sonic looked over his shoulder at the man, not believing him. But when he saw the look on Shadowrose's face, and noted that Midnight had stopped walking to look back at him with the same level of shock, this obviously wasn't a joke. Sonic felt he should have been more surprised that he had been unconscious for over a week then he actually was. Maybe it was the fact that nothing in this entire situation was normal, he had gotten used to surprises.

"No wonder I was so tired," Sonic remarked with a small smile. "I hadn't eaten for over a week!" After a series of low chuckles from Sonic, Midnight shrugged and continued to walk forward. Sonic quickly followed, wanting to avoid this awkwardness while Shadowrose worried over him. After another moment or two, Sonic heard Shadowrose's footsteps start up and follow them as well, still slightly hesitant.

"Why does this not worry you?" Midnight asked easily. "You don't even seem that surprised."

"After all I've been through in the past two days I remember; it's getting harder to surprise me. I think the only thing that could surprise me now was if two green heads erupted from your shoulders and started talking to me."

Midnight had to laugh at that one, but Shadowrose was still thinking over what Sonic had said and didn't even hear what Sonic had just now said. For another few miles, they continued to walk in silence, every person pondering over a different thing. Sonic was wondering what could possibly be worrying Shadowrose so much. Was it the fact Sonic had been unconscious for so long, or was it the fact that Sonic didn't show any alarm? Maybe it was both options.

When the trio finally escaped the forest, they found themselves on the outskirts of Apotos, but there was no one to be found in the city.

**A/N-**

**DUNDUNDUNDUN! Haha! Well, this was a somewhat boring chapter now that I read over it, but it introduced a few more conflicts the three will have to face, and a few more characters. Jeffery is going to prove how much of a problem he can be later on in the chapter. What do you think could have happened to all of the happy people of Apotos? Leave some reviews and you'll find out in Chapter 4 ^_^**


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